


wait for summertime

by may-be-emma-lee (LittleMissLiesmith)



Series: hell of a good universe [2]
Category: Stardew Valley (Video Game), Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Crossover, Curtain Fic, Fluff, Gen, Sam Winchester Gets A Dog, Sam Winchester Wants a Dog, Slice of Life, and a bit of, but not too much yet, either one., if it is plot, next installment might actually have a plot!, or it might just be a set of fluff prompts., plan to ROUND OUT THE FAMILY, rewriting of video game mechanics, what even is this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-24
Updated: 2018-05-24
Packaged: 2019-05-13 05:01:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,675
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14742461
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LittleMissLiesmith/pseuds/may-be-emma-lee
Summary: Sam Winchester goes for a run and gets a dog.(some introspection and a little of How We Got Here)





	wait for summertime

There was something intensely peaceful about the forest in the early morning. 

Sam had been running in the forest in Lebanon a few times. Not as often as he’d like, with the erratic schedule of hunting, but any time he could. It was somehow preferable to the state-of-the-art equipment in the Bunker; just him, alone, at five in the morning as the sun came up, the ground covered in fog and dew, the entire world green and gold and something secret, sacred, beautiful.

The forest southeast of the house was just as nice, if a bit worse for wear. There was a worn path around the lake, and an overgrown path going...somewhere...that Sam had been planning to take Jack to explore when he got a chance. But better than the worn path (and he did take the worn path first, jogging around the lake and across the rickety sort-of-bridges until he had a light sheen of sweat coating his forehead and was pleasantly worked up) was the deeper part of the woods. It felt like a secret that the forest was telling him-- _ shh, this is just for you. Don’t tell the others. _

He found it on the third day of his run, a strange sheer cliff that he thought was more or less where the valley’s boundaries ended until he’d taken a moment to lean against it and nearly fell through the vines covering a dark cave entrance.

Sam considered, for a moment, turning back to get one of the others. But they’d yet to find a real danger in the days they’d been in town, or even the months leading up to their habitation of the cottage. 

He pushed the vines aside and headed into the cliff.

After a moment, he popped out again, a much shorter trip through the darkness than he’d been expecting. Though it was darker, on the other side. Twilight, almost--though perhaps that could be chalked up to the thick cover of leaves above.

Sam wandered along for a moment, hand trailing against one of the enormous old trees that made up this part of the forest. This was something ancient, and his earbuds lay over his shoulder, abandoned. 

After a few minutes of walking, the trees parted, though the strange darkness remained. Sam stepped into a clearing, looking around in awe. A pool of still water sat in front of him, and across it, the white marble remains of some kind of temple, overgrown with vines but still shining underneath. 

Something nudged his foot.

Sam looked down, startled, only to relax slightly--confused, but not frightened, by the creature currently exploring his shoelaces. It was a tiny blob of something like gelatin, with beady eyes and a little antennae. 

There was absolutely nothing that Sam could recall in the lore about tiny jelly creatures. 

The creature nudged his shoe again. Sam reached down to touch it, only to recoil after his fingers brushed against the thing. It  _ burned _ , like acid, something caustic. 

Alright. Don’t touch the weird jelly things. But he was wearing long pants and boots, so he’d probably be fine.

He stepped over the creature, careful not to squish it--whatever the weird wildlife here was, it probably couldn’t help that it burned his skin. A few more of the odd things scurried into the bushes as he entered the clearing, reaching down to brush at the surprisingly clear surface of the still water. 

Ripples spread out from his fingers, echoing across the pool. The silence of the clearing was overwhelming. 

He went back the next day, and the day after that. It was a cool down from his morning run; two half-mile laps around the lake, and then a walk through the strange and secret woods, to the clearing and back out. 

There was something nice about having this to himself. He had yet to see anyone else, or any indications of anyone else, visiting that part of the forest. 

Jack could help him explore the extra path, but this part was for him, for now.

And then came the morning that Marnie-who-ran-the-ranch stopped him on the way back.

Sam only barely knew her name, and only because she was their immediate neighbor and had sent them a welcome basket. (It was a pretty nice welcome basket). Now, seeing her up close for the first time, he wasn’t sure what to make of her. She could have been any age between thirty and sixty; her clothes looked like someone’s idea of a nature elf worked in fashion design with someone’s idea of a Christmas elf.

“Hello, Seth!”

“It’s…it’s Sam.” He removed his earbuds, shifting a little awkwardly. Anyone would have towered over Marnie’s diminutive stature. Sam skyscrapered over her.

“Oh!” A dirt-caked hand flew up to her mouth. “I’m sorry. I’m Marnie.” She held out the same hand with a smile.

After a second’s hesitation, Sam took it. “Sorry if I disturbed you, Marnie.”

“No, not at all. I’m up this early anyway—the animals, y’know. I just never got finished in time to say hi while you were on your way back.”

“What changed today?”

“I had something I wanted to talk to you about! Or any of you, but I knew you’d be around.”

“I—alright.”

“Can you come with me?”

Sam did, a little hesitantly. “Er, what’s this all about?”

“You’ll see.” She unlatched the gate to the little pasture and led him towards the barn. Sam wondered why he hadn’t thought to bring his knife with him. Major oversight. If he wasn’t murdered by their overly cheerful neighbor, he’d have to remember to keep it on him. “It’s in here.”

Sam hesitantly popped his head into the barn. “What’s in—“ He cut himself off with a gasp, rushing into the barn fully to kneel next to the animal inside; a puppy easily the size of his chest, curled up and sleepy in the hay. His hand hovered over the pup’s fluffy rust-colored fur, hesitant. “Can I--”

“Sure.” Marnie smiled, leaning in the doorway as Sam’s hand encircled the dog’s head as it blinked sleepily, petting at it until it shifted, adjusted, nudged his knee and laid its head on his leg. Sam made a sound that could only be heard by dolphins. “Found ‘em a few days ago on a trip to the next town. Someone left ‘em in a box by the side of the road, poor thing. Jas and I went to the library to use their computer and look it up, and we think it’s mostly a leonberger. Herding dogs. But, thing is…” She shrugged. “We’ve already got a dog. And we don’t have need or space for another. So I was thinkin’...”

“Yes,” said Sam immediately. The thought of what Dean or Mary or any of the others would say, or where the hell they’d keep a dog, didn’t even begin to cross his mind. “Yes, we’ll take him.”

Marnie’s smile grew wider, a sunbeam. “Great. That’s great. I’ll help ya, of course. You ever owned a dog before?”

“I--not me, but I lived with someone who did for a while. A vet, actually.” Sam was surprised to find that it didn’t hurt to talk about Amelia the way it once had. Not at all, really. The dog let out a soft bark and nudged at his hand, as if to say  _ hurry up with the petting. _

“Well, I’ll help you get settled with him, get you set up with a supply of food ‘till you guys get on your feet.” Marnie made her way over, settling next to Sam and the dog, who was fully on his lap at this point. “Your siblin’s won’t mind?”

“If they do, I’ll punch ‘em.” Sam scruffed behind the dog’s ear. “He got a name?”

“Not yet. If you can’t think of anythin’, maybe you should ask that kid you’ve got. Jack.” Marnie hesitated, then, with a feigned nonchalance Sam could hear, “What’s the story with him, anyway?”

That was a good question. They hadn’t really considered that it would be weird when they showed up. There were probably all sorts of rumors. “His--dad, Cas. He’s as good as a brother to Dean and me. And Mary, too,” he amended, hoping Marnie hadn’t noticed the slip. “He might not be blood, but he and Jack are….they’re family.”

Marnie’s eyes were soft and sad. “I understand that. More than you know.” She looked down at the dog, running a hand along its back. “Y’all don’t have to be such strangers. This place--this town--it’s good people. Little rough around the edges, a little wary of strangers, but I think if you just try then you’ll get in just fine here.”

“I--yeah.” Sam lifted the puppy, crossing his eyes as he brought it closer to his face until their noses were touching. “We’ll...maybe we’ll do that.” 

He smiled at Marnie, a little. Her own smile regained its former joy when he did. 

“What’re you gonna name him?”

“I dunno. Maybe I’ll let Jack name him. I never really thought of names I’d give to a dog. It wasn’t really...something I ever thought I could have.” He ran his hand over the dog’s head and settled it back into its lap, where it started snuffling around sleepily, burying itself in his legs. 

The sad smile flitted over Marnie’s face, then came back and camped there. “Ah.”

There was silence in the barn for a minute, except for the gentle noises of the animals from outside and the dog’s small sounds. 

“...thanks,” Sam said finally.

Marnie sent him home with a large bag of dog food, a collar and leash, and strict instructions to ask her if he needed anything they couldn’t afford quite yet. Once, that might’ve hurt Sam’s pride, but there was just something about this place. It didn’t feel like charity, when Marnie offered. It felt like help from a friend.

A friend.

-O-

Jack named the dog Freddie Mercury.

**Author's Note:**

> took some liberties with how the Secret Woods works cause an Impassable Waist-High Fence does not work in fanfiction. So it’s literally hidden.
> 
> if anyone's reading this PLEASE make requests. I have no one to talk to. I'm desperately lonely.


End file.
